This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/6999669.stm

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Clashes leave eight dead in Mali Mali boosts army to fight Tuareg
(10 minutes later)
A government soldier and seven Tuareg rebels have been killed in clashes in the north-east of Mali, the defence ministry says. Mali has sent troop reinforcements to an army base near the Algerian border, as skirmishes with Tuareg rebels threaten to develop into insurrection.
The attack took place on Sunday, said spokesman, Col Abdoulaye Coulibaly. The army said one government soldier and seven Tuareg rebels were killed during the latest ambush on Sunday.
Rebels ambushed government troops travelling to the remote town of Tinzaouatene near the border with Algeria, he said. Col Abdoulaye Coulibaly said the rebels ambushed government troops travelling to the remote town of Tinzaouatene.
The violence comes days after a military garrison in Tinzaouatene was attacked by suspected Tuareg rebels. The government in Bamako has been playing down the Tuareg attacks, to avoid publicising the insurgency.
Earlier in the week, Tuareg rebels fired on a US military aircraft that was transporting supplies to Malian troops in the far north of the country. But the increasingly-daring attacks on Malian troops, including laying siege on Friday to the army base in Tinzaouatene, has prompted the Defence Ministry to rush reinforcements to the northeast.
The Tuareg are desert nomads descended from the Berbers of North Africa. Tuareg rebels also fired on a US military aircraft transporting supplies to Malian troops in the far north.
Tuareg groups staged revolts in both Mali and Niger during the 1990s. Mali receives military and financial support from the US Trans-Saharan Counter Terrorism Initiative to combat what the two governments say is the training of militant religious extremists in the desert.
Rebel groups rose up again in Mali last year, but reached a peace deal with the government in July 2006. Regional analysts argue that the US presence aggravates the situation.
Niger 'release' Splinter groups
Tuareg in Mali and Niger complain of poor representation and marginalisation. Rebel groups rose up in Mali last year to press demands for inclusion in the political process and in the economic development of their desert region.
Tuareg rebels in Niger have also staged a series of attacks on army bases in recent months, killing and kidnapping soldiers. The Tuareg want a greater say in the development of the region
But the rebel group, Movement for Justice in Niger, said on Monday it had released 14 soldiers seized in raids against government forces since the beginning of the year. As the 'Tuareg Alliance' they reached a peace deal with the government in July 2006.
A spokesman for the MNJ said the rebels wanted to show their commitment to peace. Malian officials claim that a breakaway faction, led by Ibrahim Ag Bahanga, is behind the latest attacks.
The prisoners had been handed over to the Libyan authorities and would be brought to the capital, Niamey, later on Monday, the spokesman said. They accuse Ag Bahanga of leading what they call "armed bandits" whose aim is to protect lucrative smuggling routes across the Sahara.
There has been no official response from the government. But some observers say the Tuareg have taken up arms again because the Malian government failed to deliver on its promises